Traces of a forgotten memory
by hanako kodachi
Summary: CHAPT 3 NOW UP! Inside an abandoned bar on earth, Faye findes things pointing to her past, but is she willing to change the life she has now to return to her old one?
1. Prelude

Traces of a Forgotten Memory By: Nurse Rebecca  
  
Disclaimer: hello again. It's everybody's favorite character, Hanako! Well today's story is a little more serious and a little sad. (Blame it on my writer's lack of prozac.) Just kidding....I think. Anyways this story fuscous more on Faye and her life in the past, (thus the title.) and not so much on the other characters, though they ARE in there....somewhere. This story takes place around the time of the last few episodes. I know it doesn't really fit when Faye does get her memories at the end so we're gonna pretend she didn't get her memories back. All right? Good. So none of the characters, things, and other stuff does not belong to me. (Except for, he belongs to me.) So without further babbling, on with the fanfic.  
  
Prologue: Faye walked down the market street, even though it was raining pretty hard, there was still a big crowd. They were too busy trying to buy what they needed and get out of the rain to notice the young woman with her shoulders hunched, lacking a coat or umbrella, make her way down the street to the end of the market area. After a few more elbow bruising minutes, she finally broke though the crowd.  
  
"Finally, I thought I was never going to make it though that crowd." She sighed, running her fingers though her rain soaked hair. "I've never been here before, but for some reason I feel like I need to go down this ally."  
  
The ally was small, dirty, and dingy. Trash and other derbies littered the ground. Closed doors with bare light bulbs that gave off a feeble yellow light, decorated the walls of the buildings. At the end of the ally, in the shadows, a lone fire escape slowly rusted due to lack of use and upkeep.  
  
"Not exactly a friendly ally is it?" Faye smiled. "Well if anything happens, I know how to take care of myself."  
  
Boldly she walked into the ally, her shoes making a loud clicking noise that echoed down the deserted ally. Faye continued walking down the ally, passing the closed doors, only to look at them and keep going. She felt that there was something that she should see, that she needed to see. It was as if this thing was calling to her, and Faye intended to find out what it was. Near the end of the ally, next to the fire escape, there was a small door almost hidden in the gloom. The light bulb above the door was broken and the paint was peeling on the door and frame. She walked up to the door and reached out for the knob. This was it, she knew it. Someone or something was at the other end of this door calling to her. Her fingers were wrapped around the cool, slick metal of the knob. Slowly and almost fearfully, she turned the handle. Slowly she pushed the door open and peered inside. Inside the building was dark and dusty, almost as if no one had been in there for years. Small, round tables were thrown haphazardly around the room; broken chairs littered the peeling, wooden floor. A bar sat against the far wall with a mirror above it, shattered and dusty. From the ceiling hung three large fans that had long ago stopped turning; their blades rusty and bent. Shafts of weak light drifted down to the floor, causing the dust motes to glow slightly.  
  
What is this place? I feel as if I know it from somewhere." She thought, walking into the abandoned bar.  
  
She closed the door behind her, careful not to let it slam shut. There was no way she should know this place; she was on earth right now. Her first time, in fact. Faye walked over to the bar, lightly running her fingers along its dusty surface. Looking at the mirror Faye noticed something that she didn't see from the doorway. She squinted, trying to make out the words on the plaque.  
  
"Can't see it form here." She muttered, placing both hands firmly on the bar.  
  
Carefully she hoisted herself onto her knees to where she was sitting on the bar. She than stood up and reached into the pocket of her shorts and pulled out her lighter. Flipping it open, she than held it close to the plaque. Slowly she read the name, her lips soundlessly moving as her eyes traveled over the dusty surface. Suddenly her mind flooded with images and sound, swirling until they were nothing more than a blur of sound, light, and color. Dazed, Faye dropped the lighter and both hands flew to the sides of her head, in a weak attempt to stop the attack on her brain.  
  
"St-stop....make it stop....someone....." She feebly called out, slowly falling to her knees.  
  
On and on the images swirled inside her head, faster and faster until she finally gave in. Slowly her hands slipped from her face as she slumped forward. She landed face down, her head cradled in her arms.  
  
Near the other end of the bar, by the corner. A smaller door opened. A tall shadow came in. He walked over to Faye's sleeping form.  
  
"She's out cold....." A slightly deep voice muttered.  
  
He than leaned down and carefully lifted her up, cradling her close to his chest. He walked back through the door with ease, carefully shutting it behind him.  
  
Hanako's comment: well what do you think? R&R please! And yes we know its short thatâEs why it's called a Prologue. The first chapter will be longer I promise. ::Camera pans to a view of Hanako's back to revile crossed fingers:: HEY! GET OUT FROM BEHIND THERE! ::screen goes blank:: 


	2. The Man of Storms

Chapter one: The man of storms  
  
By: Nurse Rebecca  
  
Disclaimer: Okay, it's me Hanako! And today I have a special guest today.....YAMI-BECKI!!! Yet another counterpart of our lovely writer, so since we have another person here she gets to do the endnote and I do the legal stuff, all right? Well I don't own any bebop people, except for Rai (he belongs to me!) and nothing else. Okay bye! ::Hanako and Yami-Becki start playing cards::  
  
Jet carefully brought the scissors to the edge of one of his larger water bonsais. Slowly he closed the blades, watching the green shaving drift down to the table surface. He smiled, another tree trimmed for the week.  
  
"Jet, do you have to trim those things every day?" Spike asked, walking in.  
  
"No. I trim one a week but each one has a different day, so it looks like I trim them everyday." He said, placing the scissors on the table beside the plant.  
  
Jet reached into his shirt pocket and took out an open pack of cigarettes. He took one out and tapped it against the pack in his other hand. Spike took a drag on his already lit cigarette, blowing lazy smoke rings. Jet lit his and let it dangle between his lips.  
  
"Well?" He asked after a few moments of silence.  
  
"Well what?" Spike asked, madly surprised. "Can't I come in here just to talk?"  
  
"The only time you bother to talk to me is when you want money, food, parts to fix the bebop, or more money." Jet counted off on his fingers.  
  
Spike grinned sheepishly. Jet shook his head and picked up the scissors once again. Turing the plant, Jet carefully studied each edge of the tiny tree, looking for any signs of overgrowth. Finding a spot he missed, he inched the blades closer to the leaves near the trunk of the tree. He was just about to close the blades when he was interrupted by a high-pitched noise.  
  
"WHEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!! SPI-SPI!!!!!! WE HAVE A MESSAGE!!!!!!!" Ed yelled, charging into Jet's bonsai room.  
  
She slammed into Spike who, in turn, fell into Jet, knocking all three of them into a jumble on the floor. With Spike sprawled out face up, Jet against the wall and Ed sitting on Spike's stomach. She jumped off Spike and continued to parade around the room singing "We have a message, we have a message, we have a message!" Spike fearfully looked around to see where the scissors had landed, this eyes traveling around the tile floor. He sighed, and dragged his hand across his forehead. The scissors had landed inches from his right hand, the blade buried in the tile floor between his fingers.  
  
"That was close..Ed will you SHUT UP FOR A SECOND?!" He yelled, finally getting annoyed with her singing.  
  
"Spi-Spi doesn't like Ed's singing?" She asked, her eyes brimming with tears.  
  
"No it's not that I just jeeze..." He trailed off, not knowing what to say.  
  
Her face broke into one of her famous grin. "Good! Now will you please stop playing around so Edward can show you the message?" She said, exasperated.  
  
Spike and Jet followed Ed out of the room, down the hall and into what would be called the living room. Spike and Jet sat down on the couch; Ed sat on the floor in front of the coffee table. Ed punched some buttons on the keyboard. Soon the message started on the screen. Ed leaned close to the monitor, her nose almost touching it.  
  
"Get outta the way Ed." Said Spike, placing a hand on her head and firmly pushing her back.  
  
The screen showed a man sitting with his face completely covered in shadows from the face down to his lap. In his left hand he held a goblet of red wine.  
  
"Hello, you don't know me but I have been watching your group for quite some time now and I have come to understand that you are missing a member of your group." The man paused, letting his words sink in. "I think I might be able to help you recover your missing member, for a small fee of course. I left my address at the end of this message, think about it and contact me with your decision." The screen faded to show an address.  
  
"That's on earth...." Jet said slowly.  
  
"Big deal, this guy it just trying to make some easy money, Faye will get herself out of whatever mess she's in. Besides, this isn't the first time Fay has run off like this, right?" Spike asked, stretching his arms over his head.  
  
"Yeah, but this is the first time we've gotten a message like this regarding Faye." Jet's brows knitted together in thought.  
  
"So she found some guy to play kidnapper so she could make some easy money off of us nothing more." He stood up, stretching fully.  
  
He noticed Jet still didn't fully believe Spike's analysis on all of this. Faye had been gone for almost three months and now this.  
  
"I'm going to check this out; you can come if you want." Jet stood up.  
  
Spike thought about it. "I think I might just to see what's going on exactly," He smiled. "Plus it might be fun to help her out of a jam; she would have to owe us for once....." He trailed off.  
  
"All right then, we leave for earth tomorrow." Jet got off the couch and retreated to his room.  
  
Spike waited until Ed and Jet were both out of the room before he played the message once again. He sat listening to the sound of the man's voice. He definitely had an accent, and one that Spike knew from somewhere. He thought about it, his fingers lightly drumming the arm of the couch. He played the message over and over again until he practically had it memorized, every word, every sound, the way the man's syllables seemed shorter when he spoke them-Spike froze. He hastily replayed the message once more. Of course! Why didn't I figure out this in the beginning? He thought. I know that accent, that man has an Asian accent, similar to Faye's. He stood up and paced the room, thinking hard. Than I was right, this is all some little game she's playing to sucker us into giving her more money. But why? She already cleaned out the safe when she left......unless she ran into some trouble and needs more."  
  
Spike thought about it some more before going into his room. As he lay there he fell into an easy sleep dreaming of nothing at all.  
  
Faye woke up to the sound of rain softly hitting the window. Her green eyes were blurry when she slowly opened them. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Once she could see, she surveyed the room she was in. It looked normal enough; it could almost be a hotel room, except for the occasional picture frame and other oddities that graced any available surface space. Despite the rain, sunlight was streaming in from the closed windows. She looked down at herself. Someone had put her into this room and into this bed. The bed was fairly large and covered with many soft blankets that smelled freshly laundered. There were also a number of pillows that Faye had been resting her head against before she woke up. She rubbed her head; it was still throbbing slightly from whatever happened last night. She thought hard. What did happen last night? The only thing she could remember was walking in the rein and finding that abandoned bar and- She gasped, gripping her head, the pain seemed to increase when she tried to remember how she got here.  
  
"You really should get back to bed, you know. You still haven't fully understood all of this yet, and I don't want you to get hurt, Faye." Said a slightly deep male voice.  
  
"Who the hell are you and how do you know my name?!" She said, her right hand reaching under the blankets, feeling for her gun.  
  
"Don't bother reaching for your gun, I won't hurt you." Said the voice from the doorway. "But if it makes you feel safer, than go ahead and draw it."  
  
For some reason, Faye withdrew her hand and placed it in her lap. "All right, what do you know about me and why did you bring me here?" She questioned.  
  
The man heaved a sigh. Slowly he walked into the room, closing the door behind him, his features now visible. The man was about a head taller than Faye, with a slightly large build, probably the result of weight lifting, but not much to make him look "too big." His Face was somewhat long, with a slightly sharp nose. His eyes were an ice blue-grey, leaning more towards the grey. His hair was tied back into a ponytail at the nape of the neck that reached halfway down the middle of his back with bangs that hung into his eyes, on the right side of his face his bangs hung down to his chin, slightly curving to frame that side of his face. A thin scar started near his left eyebrow and reaching down across the bridge of his nose and ending parallel to the bottom of his right eye, touching neither his nose or his eye. The scar was hardy noticeable unless someone really looked at his face. The man sat down in a nearby chair, his posture relaxed, his face not losing its cool look. In fact for some reason this man reminded Faye of a calm before the storm. Probably because of his eyes and hair. She concluded.  
  
"Well are you at least going to tell me your name?" She asked, a slight smile on her lips.  
  
"My name is Rai. Although why I am telling you this, I cannot say." Replied Rai.  
  
"Oh? And why is that Rai?" She asked.  
  
"Because you should already know my name. And who I am." He said, leaning towards Faye's bed slightly.  
  
Her Eyebrows knitted together in thought. Did she owe him money? No. What about owing him something else? No, that wasn't it either. Was he an escaped bounty that she put away? No, not even that.  
  
"I give up, why should I know you?" She asked, sighing.  
  
"Look in my eyes Faye and you will find out." He said, standing and leaning over her.  
  
Slightly startled she tilted her head towards his and looked into the blue- grey depths of his eyes. All at once the pain in her head started again, this time stronger. Her breathing grew ragged as her vision started to blur again. Shadows of memories long forgotten raced around in her brain. Memories that included him.  
  
"S-stop. Wh-what are you doing to me?" She managed to say before she slipped into darkness again.  
  
"You will understand soon enough, I'm so sorry I have to put you through all of this Faye, but until your memories resurface completely, there is nothing more I can do or say. Sleep now and we'll talk later." Rai said, tucking her back into the bed. He walked out, closing the door softly behind him.  
  
Yami-Becki: Well, well, it looks like you people are a little upset with our "lovely writer" right? Well I can't say I blame you but, you know she likes leaving things un-explained. And well I guess you guys are just gonna have to deal with it or don't read it anymore..What? Hanako: we. Are. Not. Supposed. To. Chase. The. Readers. Off! Yami-Becki: *shruges* Not my problem. Hanako:..*Gets out her archery set* You were saying? Yami-Becki: You have trespassed on my soul therefore you must play a shadow game! *eyes glow odd color* Hanako: I'm just gonna leave now...bye! *Runs off* 


	3. Shades of gray

Chapter two: Shades of gray  
  
By: Nurse Rebecca  
  
Disclaimer: ::Hanako:: Okay you guys here it is again, I bet you thought our "lovely writer" died, didn't you? Come on you can tell me. Well anyway, here it is chapter two.or is it three? I dunno, now on to the boring stuff: I don't own any one or anything from cowboy bebop or any other references to anything already trademarked in real life, Rai, on the other hand, is mine. (And he's staying that way too!) And Takeo (Who is Takeo you ask? Well read the story if you want to know!) So on with the next installment of this fine fanfic.  
  
Faye walked down a dark ally, although it appeared dark and deserted, somehow she knew that this was not the case. An air of familiarity hung heavy in the night and wrapped itself around Faye, settling around her shoulders like a warm blanket. Something inside her told her that this was a very important night, she didn't know how she knew though; it was more of a gut feeling. Pulling the thin, black, jacket tighter around her, Faye increased her pace, heading for the entrance to the ally. It was night out and, surprisingly, the stars were bright and could be seen clearly without any clouds or the moon to block them from view. Faye took no notice of this though, someone was waiting for her, someone she knew very well and wanted to see very badly.  
  
Once outside of the ally, Faye looked back behind her. Good, no one was in sight. She hurried down the deserted streets, paying no attention to the street signs or any of the very few people that crossed her path. Finally after what felt like forever, she reached her destination; the park near the outskirts of town.  
  
The park was also dark; all the street lamps nearby were out. There was a tall brick wall surrounding the entire area of the park. Ivy, thick and dark climbed the walls, leaving only traces of the brick visible. The gates at the front (and only) entrance were also tall, and made of wrought iron, curved into intricate patterns. They were also locked. Faye slowly began to walk up to the front gates, locks never stopped her. Closer she came, until she was a breath away from the gate. She reached into the pocket that was hidden in the lining of her coat and took out a small chain, on that chain was a key. This key looked like an ordinary key at a first glance, but upon closer inspection some things were very noticeable, this key had no teeth. Breath caught in her throat, Faye nervously reached out to insert the key into the lock. Her fingers brushed the cool metal.  
  
Faye woke up with a start. One hand over her heart, the other clutching.. something. She looked down and slowly opened her hand to reveal nothing. She swore softly under her breath. Leaning forwards, her head resting in her hands, she began to go over what had just happened in her dream.  
  
There was someone outside going somewhere, and I know that person was me, and sh-I was leaving to meet.... Damnit! I don't know, all I can remember is that much.  
  
Faye fell back into the bed in frustration. She than sat up with a start. Carefully she listened for any kind of sounds; there was nothing. She than climbed out of bed and began to walk around the room, getting a closer look at the pictures sitting on the dresser. Idly her fingers slid across the surface of the dresser before the rested before a picture frame. She carefully picked it up. It was an old frame with an even older picture behind the glass. The picture was faded and was once colored but now in shades of brown, black and white. There were two people in the picture-one person she knew from somewhere and the other.was herself. Faye stared at the Faye in the photo. Her hair was a tad longer-almost to her shoulders- and she was wearing a long sleeved button up shirt that had enough of the first buttons open to show a healthy amount of cleavage and the tails of the shirt that were tied loosely around her waist. She was also wearing a denim mini skirt with heeled ankle boots. More than that though was the fact that she was smiling and she looked happy. Faye noticed that the other person in the picture had an arm around the other Faye. Slowly her eyes traveled up his arm and over to his face. As she desperately searched his face for any clues, that all too familiar pain began at the base of her skull again.  
  
No, not this time! She thought, fighting with all her power. But it came again stronger this time than ever before, attacking her mind and sapping Faye of all her strength. Quickly she managed to stuff the photo in her pocket before collapsing on the bed.  
  
Rai walked down a dark street, his head bent down and his shoulders hunched over more out of habit than from the cold. It was raining again, that's all it did these past few months. But he didn't mind the rain; it suited him. The rain pelted everything in sight, and Rai was no exception. His hair was soaked and the ankle length, black trench coat he was wearing was now shiny from the rain. It was chilly, but not too bad considering the time of the year. In fact if it weren't for the unusual rain theses past few months, it would be summer.  
  
The slight rain made everything look like it was covered in a shiny glaze. Rai smiled slightly to himself as he walked. Yes this was truly his favorite type of weather. Walking down the rain soaked streets, he thought about Faye. What am I going to do about you? He thought to himself. Faye didn't remember anything that had happened prior to her accident, or even the accident itself for that matter. And by the looks of it, getting her to remember was defiantly hurting her in some way. He didn't like the sound of all of this, it was a good thing for Faye that he came along when he did, who knows how long she would have stayed there, unconscious? Rai thought about all of this as he turned the corner and began to walk down a dark ally, the same ally Faye was in three days before.  
  
Spike and Jet stood outside of a large building. Hands thrust deep in his pockets; Spike studied the building with slight interest. It was your typical, large, boring building that seemed to be the fashion around this area. But for some reason, the hairs on the back of his neck pickled and a slight shiver coursed through him.  
  
"So tell me again Jet why are we here?" Spike asked, carelessly running his hands through his dark green hair. Jet didn't answer right away, he thought he knew, but really he didn't. Finally he spoke.  
  
"We're here to see what we can find out about Faye." He trailed off. Jet wasn't going to tell Spike the real reason why they were here, not just yet anyway. But after watching that message, Jet knew he knew that guy from somewhere, he didn't know how or from where, but he just knew.  
  
"Well then, shall we go in?" Spike asked, checking his long coat to make sure all his guns were in place.  
  
Jet nodded. "Remember, ask first and if he won't talk, then we shoot."  
  
Both men nodded to each other before opening the door. Jet walked in first, Spike following closely behind. Both of them looked around for anyone or anything.  
  
Inside the building was surprisingly clean and new looking. The walls were black with a sponge print pattern with white and dark red. Deep burgundy, plush carpeting stretched from wall to wall. The walls were mostly bare except for a few modern paintings; all of which were in shades of black, white, and red. The large room was bear, no furniture or anything. In fact the only thing that wasn't hanging on a wall, was a lone antique style elevator with brass furnishings. Spike and Jet exchanged glances. Without a word both of them nodded and slowly waked to the elevator. Upon reaching the elevator, Spike jabbed the only button with his index finger and the ancient looking door slid aside, gaining them entry. Jet got on fist and made room for Spike. Once they were both in the brass gate slid shut and the elevator began to ascend into the darkness. After about four or five floors had gone by without the elevator stopping, Spike elbowed Jet to get his attention.  
  
"What is it?" Jet asked, looking at Spike.  
  
Spike grinned slightly behind his newly lit cigarette, and pointed to a corner on the floor. Jet's eyes slowly traveled to where Spike was pointing; on the floor in small clay pot full of cracks, was a bonsai, its leaves were brown and brittle and the tiny tree was quite dead. Jet's mouth hung open in mild shock. Who would put a dead bonsai in an antique elevator? Spike grinned again as he reached out with has right foot and nudged the pot. Even from that gentle tap, the pot shattered and the tree and dust-like dirt fell out of the pot and scattered in that small corner.  
  
"Why did you do that?" Jet asked, mouth open.  
  
Spike shrugged. "It's dead isn't it?  
  
"I could have saved it! The roots were still okay I think." Jet bent down and examined the roots. "Never mind..it's beyond help." Spike stifled a laugh. Jet glared at him and began to start off into space, losing himself in his own thoughts. Spike too began to think about anything and everything. Finally fifteen floors later, Spike spoke.  
  
"How high are we going? I feel like I've been in this damn thing forever!" He sighed.  
  
"I don't really know but I think it's going to stop when we get to whatever floor we need to get off at." Jet shrugged. "But that's just a guess, I don't know for sure."  
  
Spike shrugged. "I don't know, but that bonsai is beginning to stink." Spike bent over and picked up the small tree with two fingers and started to shove the bonsai through the holes in the brass gate.  
  
"What are you doing, Spike?" Jet asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Getting rid of the damn thing. It smells bad." With that being said, Spike shoved the bonsai through the gate fully and dropped it.  
  
There was a slight clatter and then just the sound of the ancient mortar lifting them to their fate. Jet sighed and shook his head. Spike ran his hands through his hair and snuffed out the remainder of his cigarette.  
  
Ed's small form was sprawled out, covering the whole couch. One leg hanging over the back of the couch, and her right arm was covering her face. Ein slowly padded into the living room, His paws making no noise on the carpeted floor. He inched up to Ed and jumped lightly on her stomach. Ed's eyes fluttered open and she spread her arms wide.  
  
"Einnnnn!" She mumbled, clasping her arms over the small dog, smothering him into her stomach, and promptly fell back asleep.  
  
::Yami-becki:: well it looks like she got a bit more done, not much more though. And she still didn't answer many questions, but what do you expect from her? I know, be thankful she updated. I guess, I don't know, or care. Anyway I have a game I need to finish and don't feel like talking to you. so shoo! *Sits on the floor and starts to play Wind Waker* 


End file.
